She Who Became Immortal

"Is there anyone who can explain the situation?"

In a place called the Great Conference Room, which was just a vast, empty space, various beastmen were seated, most of them remaining silent with grave expressions, except for a few.

The first exception was me, Euphemia Grimwood. Smirking was the lion beastman, Beast King Randall Kruger. The one with no particular expression was the strategist, the lioness Lex Asuka.

Conversely, those with solemn expressions included the first speaker, Beast King’s second son, Brandon Kruger. The rabbit beastman Luche Rubia, who for some reason acts like my stalker. The elephant beastman Nellest Dillis, who takes up a lot of space. The wolf beastwoman warrior Lil Ligrill. Beast King’s eldest son, Garland Kruger. The snake-man Oren, who is Beast King’s aide. And the eagle beastman Brunoa Kisk and his son, Kuon Kisk. Lastly, there was the boar-orc Zonda Pauga, who had been speaking until a moment ago.

Altogether, twelve of us.

If anyone remembers all their names, they should be praised for their memory. Honestly, even I wouldn’t remember them without looking at their faces and appearances in turn. Frankly, it feels like there’s no need to remember them anyway.

Setting that aside—let's get to the main point.

What exactly happened?

And how should we respond to the event?

“Let me explain what we know so far.”

The one who reluctantly stood up was the busty lioness, Lex Asuka.

Everyone nodded as if it were only natural and began listening. It was probably something that had happened many times before, with Lex always taking the lead in summarizing the situation.

“First, during Brunoa’s patrol, it was discovered that Gaeriko Village was attacked by humans. This is the village of the dog beastmen closest to the human territory. Since there is a forest between the village and the human territory, it means the humans led an army through the forest from their territory. In other words, this was not a random attack by some armed human slave traders hunting beastmen.”

It was a clear military action and not a random act of violence.

Brunoa, the great eagle, witnessed it from the sky, flew back to the Beast King’s territory, and informed us, leading to this meeting.

If their aim was extermination, it might already be too late.

However, there’s also the possibility that it wasn’t, and in any case, we can’t just ignore the humans invading "our" territory.

In other words, we need to do something.

“So, Beast King Randall, how do you intend to deal with this situation?”

Lex asked Randall, who was sitting with one knee up, with an indifferent expression. He grinned menacingly and looked around at everyone present.

“What should we do? That’s obvious. So much so that I’ll ask you the opposite. What do you all think we should do? No, more importantly... how far do you think we should go?”

It was a test.

The rabbit beastman Luche looked particularly gloomy, while the wolf beastwoman warrior Lil showed a displeased face. On the other hand, the boar-orc Zonda seemed excited like a child before a field trip.

“Needless to say, we need to retaliate. The villagers of Gaeriko might still be alive. They could have been captured as slaves. In that case, I believe we should gather a substantial force to reclaim the village and then proceed to invade the human territory.”

The one who spoke was Beast King’s second son, Brandon Kruger.

Unlike his elder brother Garland, who remained silent with his legs crossed, Brandon spoke clearly and loudly, making sure everyone in the room heard him. His words were flawless, leaving no room for others to add anything. This was true leadership.

However, Randall seemed a bit bored.

“Even if you say something so obvious... It’s too obvious and dull. Hey, Euphemia Grimwood. Do you have anything to add?”

It was a casual prompt.

Whether it was polite or not didn’t matter.

I stood up gracefully, shrugged dramatically, and snorted with laughter.

“I don’t disagree with Brandon’s words, but it’s a bit too obvious and boring. Anyway, whether the people in Gaeriko Village are alive or dead, reclaiming the village is a given. After that, it’s only natural to invade the human territory and take some form of retaliatory action. So, the question is about specifics.”

Retaliation—how exactly?

Reclamation—how should it be done?

“Lex! What’s your take?”

The Beast King urged with a laugh.

The lioness nodded expressionlessly.

“Ideally, we would have Beast King Randall lead the charge. We’ll assemble a force led by Nellest, Luche, and Zonda. The initial objective is the reclamation of Gaeriko Village, but since the situation is unclear, we need to remain flexible. Therefore, Brunoa will act as a messenger rather than a combatant. He will inform us of the situation, and we will decide on our course of action en route. Essentially, we’ll operate under the assumption that the dog beastmen of the village are either alive or completely wiped out. Regarding the invasion of the human territory—”

Lex’s voice was clear and easy to understand despite her lengthy explanation, ensuring everyone comprehended her plan.

“—geographically, this is likely the work of the Spade territory, a human noble domain. Thus, we’ll cross the forest into their territory and storm the Spade noble’s mansion to exact retribution. However, we won’t be occupying the human territory.”

“Why not? They killed our people. Taking their land and making it ours is only fair, right?”

“Because we can’t maintain an occupation. Or would you prefer to personally govern human land within human territory?”

“Hah, like I’d bother with such a hassle. But then how do we exact retribution?”

“Let’s ask Euphemia Grimwood. Since it involves humans, she might have the best insight. What do you think?”

It was an abrupt turn of attention.

But since I was already standing, I naturally nodded.

“That’s obvious. We use force to break into the Spade mansion, crush their resistance, and establish our dominance. That’s all we need to do.”

“Is that really enough?”

Randall tilted his head, looking puzzled, but to me, that seemed strange. Dominance and hierarchy were natural instincts for beasts.

In reality, since we have mouths, we should be able to talk it out. I truly believe that. But I know the world doesn’t work that way.

Bullying is wrong.

Violence is wrong.

Taking from others, trampling on them, and degrading them—all wrong.

I know that.

But these things exist.

Both in my previous life and in this world.

"Ah, that’s all there is to it. Think about it, there’s no need to bother taking their territory. Just as Lex said, we can't maintain or manage it. Plus, human armies would soon arrive to reclaim the land taken from Spade territory, leading to a bloody struggle over a place we don’t even want. On the other hand, if we show them the power dynamic, we won’t have trouble for a while. Of course, we can bring back spoils or whatever. In fact, we should do so.”

“You’re fine with invading human land, ravaging it, and taking from it, Euphemia—despite being human yourself?”

Randall asked with a serious face.

I snorted in response.

“What are you saying at this point? If we talk about right and wrong, of course violence is wrong. But we’re going to do it anyway, right? Who cares about morality? Same species? Doesn’t matter. They’re different people. They’re not my people, so... I might as well help out.”

I sensed a slight chill in the room’s atmosphere.

But it was my honest feeling.

I am Euphemia Grimwood, someone true to herself.

---

Later, as I idly watched Lex Asuka at work, an entire night passed before I knew it.

The fact that the military preparations were completed in just one night was astonishing, but it was also a matter of the Beast King’s army’s numbers. After all, there were few in number. If it were a human army, more people would be needed, and we’d have to secure transportation.

The Beast King’s army didn’t need horses for travel, nor did it have heavy infantry. Those who had weapons already possessed them, eliminating the need for military-issued equipment.

Moreover, this expedition—if that’s what we should call it—was quite short in distance, requiring minimal provisions. Considering the hunting opportunities in the plains and forests along the way further reduced the needed supplies.

Additionally, the supreme commander was Beast King Randall.

Under the Beast King, there were no factions or personal dislikes, which was a significant factor.

The supreme commander was Beast King Randall.

The elephant beastman, Nellest.

The rabbit beastman, Luche.

The boar-orc, Zonda.

With their followers below them.

And me, Euphemia “Serving out of curiosity” Grimwood.

Altogether, about 150.

It was too many for reclaiming a village but, from a normal perspective, insufficient for capturing a lord’s mansion. For a human army, such a number would be laughable.

But this was a beastman unit.

And the supreme commander was the Beast King.

We would probably manage.

At the very least, reclaiming the village would be a breeze.

Incidentally, Lex Asuka was to accompany us to Gaeriko Village to assess the situation before deciding on her next actions. She wouldn’t be joining us in Spade territory.

We departed before dawn and arrived at a checkpoint-like village a short distance from the Beast King’s capital—let’s call it that for convenience—when,

“Lady Euphemia!”

Katarina Grimoire came running in and knocked me to the ground, despite being a girl of only about ten years old.

As I patted the back of the girl hugging me tightly, I realized a grin was spreading across my face.

That was close. This would’ve undoubtedly turned into a boring development otherwise.

“I came when you called, Lady Euphemia. It looks like the fun part is still left.”

It was Junos speaking from a slight distance.

Others, about half the forces from the demon realm, had also come. Everyone was watching Katarina pin me down with amused expressions. Serena, who had apparently come to welcome my “guests” ahead of time, was there too.

“Ah, you made it in time.”

I said.

Now, somehow—the story was about to get interesting.